Junior State of America (JSA) was founded by sophomore Anastasia Pavlinskya. The club is meant to educate students on current events. Photo Credit: ROBYN BONFIGLIO
BY TAYLOR MANDEL
Cooper City High School (CCHS) students are prompting political awareness through political clubs being offered after school.
CCHS has three different political clubs: JSA (Junior State of America), Young Legislators, and ACLU (American Civil Liberties Union). Although they are all represent different aspects of politics, all three share the same goal of making CCHS students more involved in society.
JSA, founded by sophomore Anastasia Pavlinskya, was created by and for the students who are concerned about what is happening around them. They discuss such topics as politics, government, foreign affairs, the law, and education. Every week, students talk about events in the state and the country that are relevant to students. The club’s officers have planned multiple hands-on activities for this school year, including acting out a town hall meeting with the students, discussing concerns with the school and the community, and working at election polls.
“When I first joined the club, I didn’t even have a clue about politics,” Recording Secretary of JSA sophomore Noah Avidan said. “I’ve already learned a lot more about politics and have become a lot more involved in them. The club is very fun and interesting, and it is really going to help me when I am eligible for voting.”
JSA is not the only political club at CCHS. Young Legislators, founded by seniors David and Ariel Smilowitz and sponsored by English teacher Ms. Margolin, allows students to get involved with the community and can come up with new bills to be passed by the legislature. The club members go over problems and try to come up with appropriate and reasonable solutions. After the ideas and solutions are researched, they are sent over Senator Eleanor Sobel. If the senator is interested in the idea, she investigates the issue. The students then find the specifics for the bill that they want to pass. Once the bill is written, club members find an industry or an organization to support the bill. They then lobby the bill to get passed by the legislature.
“My favorite part about Young Legislators is getting together with different students and sharing ideas,” David Smilowitz said.
In addition to JSA and Young Legislatures, ACLU, founded by sophomore Elliott Jacobs and also sponsored by Ms. Margolin, is a club where students can “fight for their rights”. Although the club is not in action yet, it is expected to become active within the next year. Students can attend the club meetings to become informed of their rights as American citizens.
“Knowing your rights is extremely important, and they are often abused, especially with students,” Jacobs said.
With the creation of these political clubs CCHS students are given the opportunity to become better informed about their society.
“I think the reason why more people are starting and joining political clubs is because they want to be able to defend themselves,” Avidan said. “They want to learn about the government, and they want to understand their rights.”
